Nationwide descriptive epidemiological study of patients with COVID-19 evacuated from Wuhan, China, to Japan from January to February 2020.

ABSTRACT

We investigated epidemiological findings regarding the route of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and infection prevention and control (IPC) measures among returnees in the emergent evacuation from Wuhan, China to Japan under the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. A total of 12 of 14 returnees (median age [range] 49.5 years [29-65 years]; 9 men [75%]) were confirmed COVID-19. The proportions of returnees with COVID-19 were 12/566 (2.1%) in the 1-3 flights and 2/263 (0.8%) in the 4-5 flights. Six patients were asymptomatic on admission, while three patients developed symptoms thereafter. None reported a specific history of contact with animals, going to seafood markets, or visiting medical facilities. Two patients contacted with an individual confirmed or suspected to have COVID-19, respectively. Most patients resided in hotels in the center of Wuhan city, taking taxis and trains to work and supermarkets. Patients relatively adhered to IPC measures such as wearing a mask and hand hygiene. However, emphasis on IPC measures such as universal masking and more rigorous avoidance of exposure risk may have been necessary to prevent infection. In addition, forced social distancing due to lockdown might contribute to the lower infection rates in Flights 4 and 5, compared to Flights 1-3.